


Shooting Light

by ultravioletvv13



Category: Stardew Valley (Video Game)
Genre: Eventual Romance, F/M, Heavy Drinking, Medicinal Drug Use, Past Abuse, Sex, Smoking, Work In Progress
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-09
Updated: 2020-11-30
Packaged: 2021-03-09 04:40:46
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,132
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27478954
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ultravioletvv13/pseuds/ultravioletvv13
Summary: Carrie thought for a long time her grandfather's farm in Stardew Valley was sold, until difficult circumstances bring her straight there.  As a child of a chairman and VP of JojaCorp, her moving rustles things in the small town.  Word spreads fast.On the other side of town, Shane sees this new resident and immediately  tries to shy away from her.  He's content being one of the town's drunks and doesn't need her, or anyone.What is going to bring these two together?
Relationships: Emily/Shane (Stardew Valley), Shane/Female Player (Stardew Valley), Shane/Original Character(s), Shane/Player (Stardew Valley)
Comments: 1
Kudos: 8





	1. Starting

**Author's Note:**

> Hi everyone! I originally wrote this story for a different writing website, but decided it would be too...dark? Explicit? So it's here instead! I'm adding tags as I go along because I'm not quite sure what the tags really will be here!

**Carrie**

Carrie sighed as she leaned back in her stiff grey desk chair. She stretched her arms over her head and arched her back, and could feel the slight crack coming from her mid back and neck. From her cubicle, isolated and lonely, she could see the green light from the far wall still on, flashing mockingly. That means she wouldn't have time to go to the bathroom and call her father. 

She sighed, looking at her mountain of paperwork which has everyone in the room backed up since last week. Still, she tried to make the most of it by pulling her discreet black wireless headphones out of her bag. She put only one in, in her left ear, where her hair could hide it if a floor manager came about. She carefully sneaked her phone out from underneath her raised keyboard and connected the headphones to it via Bluetooth. She pressed the playlist "Happy Days", slid the phone back under the keyboard, and began working. 

Her fingers were flying over the keyboard as she finished report after report, all while listening to rock and punk music that was absolutely nothing like the classical music JojaCorp has playing 24/7. She constantly watched the blinking green light in between the reports, hoping it will turn red soon. The breaks her and her coworkers were given were far and few in between, and when they were given changed almost daily. She quickly looked down at the clock on her desktop computer while finishing the report she had been working on. The small clock read 1:15PM, well after when their lunch break should be. 

Carrie looked around as she tried to spot the floor managers. She could see the hat of one of them, and she quickly ducked back down and started typing away, starting up a new report. 

"Hello, Miss Scott." A high, scratchy voice she recognized said in her direction. Carrie only looked up slightly, knowing that if she gave the floor manager her full attention, she would get yelled at.

It was Jake, her ex-boyfriend from years ago. He was a mess, and she knew it, but seeing him there freaked her out a bit. She could feel her hands start to shake as she realized he was close enough where she could smell him. His presence there alone terrified her.

"What do you want, Jake?" She quipped back, not bothering to look at her ex boyfriend standing right at the entrance to her cubicle.

Jake stood at a meager five foot five, only a few inches taller than Carrie. He had pale, almost translucent-looking skin, with sunken in, beady black eyes and a patchy black beard. His black haired mullet was hidden under his floor manager hat. Carrie could tell he had gotten significantly thinner than when she dated him, probably from all the drug usage. He smelled exactly like he used to, piss and cigarettes. She was even surprised he was hired, and worked there, with the way he was.

Jake had physically abused her when they dated. It was the most terrible and terrifying three years of her life. Carrie eventually broke up with Jake over two years ago when she found he had made out of her apartment with her grandmother's inheritance to buy massive amounts of different types of drugs. She did end up taking him to court, and getting the money back, but not after Jake had threatened her and her father's life. She had gotten a restraining order against him, but she hadn't had time to renew it last year because of all the work she had to get done. She was hoping to never run into him again, or even see his face for that matter.

Jake cleared his throat and Carrie looked up at him. "What?" She said. "I'm busy." Her heart dropped in her stomach as she spoke to him.

"You look nice, babe." He said in a low whisper, and Carrie stopped typing and looked down.

While she was well endowed in the choice areas, she was larger in others that she didn't want to be. Her few friends described her as "adorably curvy", whatever the hell that meant. She was wearing a grey blouse, buttoned up as much as she could without suffocating herself, with safety pins keeping everything in place. The long-sleeved blouse was tucked into a black pencil skirt, and her legs were clad in tan nylons. She put on her flats today because she was without a car at the moment and couldn't drive to work, so she had to take the bus. Her skin felt like it was crawling because she could feel wherever his gaze went.

She glared at him and went back to her work. She figured if she ignored him, he would go away eventually.

Suddenly, a shrill bell sounded and the green flashing light turned to a stagnant red one. 

"Break time, sweet cheeks." Jake said, pulling a pack of cigarettes out of his shirt pocket. "Do you still smoke?" 

Carrie just continued to glare at him and grabbed her bag from underneath her desk. She waited until he was looking away and pulled her phone out from underneath her keyboard. If he caught her with that there, she was done for. She would most definitely be suspended for a week and she couldn't afford to have that. 

She rushed towards the bathroom past all the oblivious people who didn't even see the red light flash or even hear the shrill bell. 

She took a right as soon as she got out of the stuffy office and walked right into the women's restroom.

She picked the stall that was as far away as possible from the door and pulled out her phone. 

Her father was a long-time employee for JojaCorp and ran the offices west of Zuzu City. He was a two day drive way, and a thirty-six hour train ride. Carrie tried to call him every day, but he's in a time zone that's three hours behind, so he can get busy. She did, however, know that at 10AM, he didn't have many meetings.

She pressed his contact information and put the other wireless headphone into her ear. She heard the ringing and hoped he'd pick up.

After about eight rings, she heard his deep voice in his voicemail. _"Hello there, thanks for calling Joseph Scott, VP of JojaCorporations for the entire west coast of the Ferngill Republic. I'm away from my phone right now, so please leave me a message with your name and number, and I'll get back to you as soon as I can. Thank you, and remember, life's better with Joja!"_

She groaned before she heard the beep and then began talking. "Hi, Dad, it's Carrie. I was just calling for our daily check in. I found out Jake started working at the same Joja office I am, and I'm a bit freaked out. I just wanted to call and see how you're doing. I hope your day is going good for you, and I'll call again when I leave work at 4. I love you, Yoba's watching, and may Grandpa watch over you, Dad. Love you, bye." 

Carrie hung up the phone and pulled the seat down on the toilet, sitting on it. She could hear the music flowing back into her ears, and took out the right one, and put it back in her bag. She then took out her lunch, which was just a simple sandwich and an apple. She bought them from the small cafe in the bottom floor of the office building, and knew she had a bottle of water on her desk. That's the only thing Joja allowed, was water and paperwork. 

As she was taking a bite of her sandwich, she heard the door open to the bathroom. She froze completely, no one ever comes in the bathroom right when break starts. 

She heard two sets of heels clack on the tiles, but only one of the stall doors creak open. 

She sat frozen in her spot, pausing her music. She didn't know what was going on, but wanted to be as quiet as possible. 

"Did you meet the new floor manager?" A sickly sweet voice said, turning on the water in the sink. 

"Oh, yes! Jake? He's kind of dreamy if you ask me." A higher voice said, muffled by the stall. 

Carrie rolled her eyes as she continued to eavesdrop.

"He said he just got back from war with the Gotoro Empire. Can you believe that? They must've tortured him so." The first voice said, and then Carrie heard the toilet flush. _Such a liar._

"I hear he smokes cigarettes because of the trauma." The second voice responded, opening the door. 

_How old are we?_ Carrie thought to herself. _High schoolers?_

The two women in the bathroom with her giggled and she could hear the water running. She then heard the two of them walk out and she released the breath she was holding. 

She quickly finished half of her sandwich and put the rest and the apple back in her bag. She exited the bathroom and looked into the office. The red light was still on, and the timer above it still said she had twenty minutes of "rest". She decided she was going to go on the roof for a bit. She felt like she was going to puke if she stayed inside anymore.

Carrie set a timer for fifteen minutes on her phone and walked up the three flights of stairs to get on the roof. 

She opened the door and looked around outside. Jake must not know that the roof is closer than the designated smoking area on ground level, and for that, she was grateful.

She spotted her favorite floor manager, Flo, sitting farther down from the door and leaning against another entrance. Carrie went over to her.

"Hey, Flo." Carrie sighed, sounding defeated, and sat on the ground next to Flo. She had her floor manager cap off and her bright red hair shone in the sunlight. Her blue eyes sparkled as she took in Carrie's silhouette. Next to Carrie's long, blonde hair pulled into a low braid, and pale green eyes, Flo looked much more fun.

"Hey, yourself." Flo took a drag of her cigarette, and blew it away from Carrie. "I thought you were quitting. I haven't seen you up here in a few weeks."

Carrie rummaged through her bag to bring out a pack of cigarettes, barely touched. She told herself she was going to quit, but after seeing Jake and reliving the pain and anguish she went through, she needed a smoke.

"Saw someone who caused a lot of problems in my past. I need the smoke." Carrie lit it and tilted her head back against the wall.

"Would that be Jake?" Another drag from the floor manager, and more smoke blown into the air. 

"Yupp. Jake has been a pain in my ass for years. I can't get away from him." Another drag from the blonde, flicking the ash off of it. 

"He's been telling people you're a problem. Maybe it's just to get you to quit so you can be with him again. I remember you telling me about him." Flo said, and that caused Carrie to turn her head in shock. 

"What the hell do you mean, he's been telling people I'm a problem?" She asked.

"Saying you ain't doing your work like you should. I checked your computer records. You completed twelve reports today, which is a few more than you normally do. I'll stick up for you if he causes more problems." Flo said, taking one final drag and putting out her cigarette on the ground. "And I ain't about to tell the little bugger that I smoke up here either. He'll probably be up here 24/7 chain smoking." 

Carrie nodded in understanding. She said goodbye to Flo as the floor manager got up and went back to the other door Carrie came from. 

The blonde sat there, looking at her clothing, her bag, and the cigarette in her hand. She hated this life. She knew she hated Zuzu City, and Jake, and her tiny ass apartment. She hated her job, her coworkers, her fucking awful office space, and most importantly, she hated herself for getting into this mess.

She felt her phone buzz as she took another drag of the cigarette. It was from her father.

_Was in a meeting, sorry. Will call tonight when I'm done with work. Grandpa's watching over you, lovebug. Love, Dad._

Carrie put her phone down and thought about her situation. She didn't want to move to the west coast, that was as close to the Gotoro Empire as she could get. She didn't want to be a part of the bullshit that was going on over there.

_Grandpa's watching over you, lovebug._ Those words kept playing in Carrie's head as she put out her cigarette and went back down to the office. 

She sat back down in her cubicle and hid her phone again. _Grandpa's watching over you._

Carrie looked through her paperwork and realized if she wanted to finish the mountain of destroyed trees, she would have to work past four. She groaned as the green light went back on, flashing, and people quickly rushed into their cubicles. She saw a flash of red under a blue cap and saw Flo coming towards her.

"You okay, sweetie?" Flo asked, genuine concern for the girl sitting in front of a blank blue screen. "Your computer didn't crash again, did it?"

Carrie shook her head slowly. "Just trying to find the way to approach the mountain that's over here." 

"Is that Miss Scott I hear, talking?" The scratchy voice of her ex floated into her ears.

Carrie audibly groaned and rolled her eyes, and she looked at Flo, who was holding in her small giggle. 

The young worker stayed quiet as Jake came over and stood next to Flo. She turned back to her desktop and began rummaging through her papers. 

"Miss Scott was just asking me about what the best way to tackle the paperwork was. I gave her my honest opinion. What do you think, Jake?" Flo said, trying to get Jake to leave as soon as possible. 

"I think," Jake said, walking into the cubicle and invading Carrie's space, "she hasn't been doing enough. Isn't that right, sweetie?"

Carrie ignored him and started on the first report after her break. She could smell his awful breath and horrible stench, but chose not to make a face. 

"Jake, I really don't think this is necessary..." Flo said, trying to pry him away from Carrie.

"No, Flo, I really think this is. She hasn't been doing enough for this company." He hissed, pulling his arm out of Flo's grip. 

"Excuse me, sir, but I need to do my job, so if you could just leave me alone so I can get more done, that'd be appreciated." Carrie said, her fingers flying on the keyboard, and she hadn't even bothered looking at Jake.

"Ungrateful bitch!" Jake sneered, grabbing Carrie's blonde braid and pulling it back.

Carrie gasped and grabbed the base of her braid. The back of her head was stinging, and immediately her fight or flight instinct kicked in. She had been in this situation with him before, and instantly felt around her desk for something sharp. 

"Don't you know who you work for, bitch?" Jake hissed in her ear, and she could see Flo call for security and backup from the corner of her eye. 

Her hands settled on her grandfather's switchblade, something she totally forgot she brought to work with her. She only used it to open letters, but she was so thankful she found it. 

"Answer me, you whore!" He hissed in her free ear, yanking on her braid. Carrie winced in pain, but kept her lips sealed. "Who the hell do you work for?" 

"My fucking father." Carrie defiantly said, opening the switch blade. She fanned out her hair and cut her braid right at her shoulders, underneath her hand and in two quick secession, saw-like slashes. Her silky blonde hair released itself from her scalp and unraveled in Jake's hands, and she saw a small tinge of red on the dead ends of her hair. "Now don't fucking touch me." 

"You just cut off all your hair for no reason, bitch." Jake laughed. "You looked so much better with it long like that. Such a shame."

Security had finally come up to her level, and found Jake holding the loosely braided dead hair of Carrie's. They escorted him out of her cubicle, and then out the office.

Flo came over to her. "I can write up an incident report, sweetie. Would you like that? I saw the whole thing." 

Carrie nodded, too mute and shocked to say anything. This was the first time she fought of her abuser and successfully won.

Flo nodded her head, patted Carrie on the shoulder, and left the cubicle. She saw the flash of red hair in the upper office a few minutes later, shouting with another floor manager she hadn't seen before. 

Carrie stared blankly at the blue screen in front of her, and that's when she let the tears flow. She helped finish unravel the braid at the base of her neck, cursing herself for letting her hair grow out that much. 

Although she had silent sobs, the tears were hot on her face and heavy on her heart. She looked up to see security guards standing at the entrance to her cubicle. She silently thanked Flo for taking the extra safety precautions. 

She opened the bottom drawer of her desk in search of another hair tie, and rummaged around a bit. She saw a purple seal on an envelope, and pulled that out first, before finding an actual scrunchie and putting her brutally chopped hair in a low bun.

She carefully opened the letter to see her grandfather's handwriting.

_Dear Carrie,_

_If you're reading this, you must be in dire need of a change._

_The same thing happened to me, long ago. I'd lost sight of what mattered most in life...real connections with other people and nature. So I dropped everything and moved to the place I really belong._

_I've enclosed the deed to that place...my pride and joy: Orientis Farm. It's located in Stardew Valley, on the southern coast. It's the perfect place to start your new life._

_This was my most precious gift of all, and now it's yours. I know you'll do the family name proud, my girl. Good luck._

_Love, Grandpa_

_P.S. If Lewis is still alive say hi to the old guy for me, will ya?_

Carrie continued to sob as she read the letter over and over and over again. She couldn't believe Grandpa left her his farm. She had been there every summer since she was born up until she was fifteen, and couldn't believe she was able to go back. Her dad always told her the bank confiscated it, so they couldn't even visit the area if they wanted to.

Carrie made her decision right then and there about what she was going to do. She wiped her hot tears off her cheeks and pulled out her phone to begin texting her father. 

_I don't care if Jake gets fired, I'm quitting. I can't stand to be part of JojaCorp anymore. He assaulted me at work, my wonderful floor manager Flo is writing up the report for me, I finished all my work. Today is my last day. I found the deed to Grandpa's old farm, and that's where I will be until I figure out how to work with the Jake situation. I'm going to go down as soon as I can. Love you, dad. Grandpa really is watching over us._

She quickly sent the text as she dove into her work. She wanted to get everything done before she really and truly left for good.

Five hours later, closer to 7pm, her cubicle was cleared of paperwork. She was thankful they stopped handing out reports to be finished around 4pm, so she could really focus on everything she needed to get done. 

She grabbed all the personal belongings of hers from her cubicle: her grandfather's switch blade, which saved her life today, a few extra pens, a photo of her and her father, and a signed copy of Little Red's most recent album when she visited the office. Everything fit into her purse, and she logged out for the last time from her computer. 

She walked out of the office and up the short flight of stairs to the floor managers office, where she found Flo, her boss, and Jake all sitting behind computers.

Carrie knocked on the door frame, and Flo and her boss turned towards her.

"I just want you guys to know, I quit. I finished all my work and there's none of my personal belongings in my cubicle. I will have you know I will not be taking the company personally to court, because let's be honest, they wouldn't do very much anyways. I will, however, be taking Jake to court for assault and harassment." Carrie said, and Flo smiled at her.

Her boss just nodded, gave her a piece of paper, and said, "Sign here, please."

Carrie carefully read over the paper. It basically said if she wanted to quit, she'd lose everything she'd worked towards, and may not get the same position if she were to come back. 

She signed it at the bottom and Flo came over to her. "One more, just for old time's sake?" The older floor manager asked.

Carrie nodded, a smile gracing her face. She shook her boss' hand goodbye, didn't bother to look at Jake, and walked up the few flights of stairs with Flo.

The two girls sat down on the opposite side of the roof from where they came out and lit up a cigarette each. 

"So now that you've quit, whatcha gunna do?" Flo asked, looking over at the blonde. Flo's blue eyes lit up, like there was something exciting going on.

Carrie rummaged around in her bag until she found the letter from her grandfather. She handed it to Flo and took a drag from her cigarette. "I'm going there, and staying there, until I can figure out something else." 

Flo read over the letter for a few minutes, taking a few drags in between. She finally handed the letter back and exhaled. "I'mma miss you, sweetie. You were the only normal chick in this place."

Carrie laughed, a light, melodic laugh. "Right back at you, Flo. But, if I come visit, I'll call you. Assuming, of course, you don't change your number."

Flo laughed at that herself. "It hasn't changed in twenty years, doubt it'll change now." 

Carrie nodded and smiled up at the setting sun. The orange glow made Zuzu City look magical. She knew she was going to miss just this view, but she was excited for the rest of her life on the farm.

The two ladies finished their cigarettes and hugged each other. Flo smiled at the young blonde and walked her down to the elevator.

"I might not get texts, so when I get moved in, I'll send you a letter, okay?" Carrie told her, and they hugged again. She knew she was going to miss Flo.

"Be good, sweetie." Flo said, and the elevator doors opened. 

Carrie got on the elevator for the last time, this one completely empty, and waved goodbye to Flo.

The doors closed and the awful Joja classical music was overcoming the silence she wanted. 

She got off at the first floor and opened the front door of the office building to see the bustling city of Zuzu. 

_I most definitely will not miss this place._


	2. Slumping

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This gets a biiiiiiit not safe for work, but fuck it. Have fun kiddos!

**Shane**

Shane slowly turned over and groaned awake. The sunrise leaking into his room shone brightly against his walls, making the room seem on fire. He turned his head and looked at his alarm clock. 5:00AM written in bright red, flashing lettering blinded him, and he covered his eyes.

He groaned again and sat up. Immediately, his head started spinning and he threw his hand over his eyes. 

"I'm still fucking drunk..." he mumbled, swinging his covers off of his lap.

The cold air tickled his skin as Shane swung his legs over the bed. He looked down at his dirty white undershirt and his plain blue boxers. _I should change,_ he thought, looking over at his laundry basket. He saw that there was at least one clean undershirt inside it, and maybe a few pairs of boxers and shorts. _And, great...I need to do laundry when I get home from work._

He slowly lifted himself from his bed and walked (well, more like wobbled) over to the laundry basket. 

He stripped himself of his dirty clothes and pulled on the fresh new ones, leaving the dirty ones in a pile on the floor. He wobbled back over to his dresser and pulled open a drawer. Inside were various types of shorts: camo and khaki cargo shirts, jean shorts, and linen shorts for the extremely warm weather and for festivals. 

Shane pulled out a pair of green khaki shorts and pulled out a light blue teeshirt from another drawer above that one. He sluggishly pulled on the clothing and looked back at his clock. 

5:21AM shone brightly back at him. _Damn, it took me 20 minutes to get dressed?_

He groaned and opened his bedroom door to reveal the rest of Marnie's home. The yellow walls and cedar floors were illuminated by the red sunlight of dawn through the windows. Immediately to his left was the old-fashioned kitchen with the dining table and the entrance to the chicken coop. He's been staying with his aunt Marnie ever since moving out to Stardew Valley years ago. The hustle and bustle of Zuzu City just wasn't for him, no matter what bad habits he picked up along the way. 

Shane shuffled from his room and through the kitchen to the chicken coop. Charlie, his favorite white chicken, trotted up to him and made a small squawk noise. "I hear ya, I hear ya." he mumbled, going over to the feed bag and pouring it in the trough. White, brown, and blue hens flocked to the trough as Shane navigated the many feathery bodies trying to trample him for food. He put the bag down where he found it and grabbed the bucket next to it, going back to the door and using the hose attached to the wall to fill the bucket. He then plopped the bucket down in the middle of the coop, and returned to the kitchen.

He made and quickly ate scrambled eggs, then looked at the clock on the kitchen oven. 5:45AM. Time to leave for work.

"Bye Marnie! Bye Jas!" Shane called out as he put his dishes in the sink. He quickly went into his room and grabbed his jacket, making sure the flask was in there before stopping by his door. His head was spinning, he was definitely still drunk.

"You can do this," he whispered to himself, putting on his jacket and walked out of his room and Marnie's house.

His walk to work was uneventful as he walked through the center of town at dawn. He regularly took pulls from the flask as he passed what he considered landmarks in his walk: one swig at Leah's house, one swig for Sam and Emily's house respectively, one swig for the Saloon and he always pours one out at Evelyn and George's house for their daughter. 

Shane took one last swig as he crossed the bridge over the small river and looked at the gigantic JojaMart sign looming over him. If he wasn't drunk before he got to work, he was plastered now. He swayed slightly as he walked through the automatic doors, but played it off as he was going straight for the break room. Morris, his boss and this franchises' owner, chirped his usual "Good morning from JojaCorp!" in his nasally voice, and Shane just waved at him. 

He opened the door to the breakroom and made a beeline for his locker. There, he took one final swig from his flask before putting his coat away. He quickly changed into his JojaCorp jumpsuit (mandatory for all workers of JojaMart) and pulled the cap over his shaggy black hair. 

Shane dove into his work, ignoring everyone who came in except for Sam when he came in around 1. He normally doesn't talk to the blond skater boy, but today, the kid actually had something interesting to say.

"There's someone living at Orientis Farm." Sam blurted out when he came over to Shane to mop. Shane looked up momentarily from his restocking box, but then looked back down. 

"So?" he replied, taking out individual JojaCola cans and stacking them on the middle shelves. "Why did I need to know?" 

"Don't tell anyone I told you this, but..." Sam side-stepped closer to Shane and whispered, "it's a lady, and she's from Zuzu City." 

"Okay." Shane said, taking a deep breath but continuing to stock the shelf. "I really don't care."

"No, no, you don't understand!" Sam relented. "She's hot!"

Shane rolled his eyes. "So?" 

"And she's older. I'm thinking like 32 or something." Sam wiggled his eyebrows. "She's a cougar!"

"If she's into you." Shane retorted, picking up and breaking down the empty box. "If not, that's rough buddy."

"I'll bet you 10 gold coins and a bottle of that whiskey you like to keep your flask stocked with I'll get her number first." Sam held out his hand, ready for a handshake.

Shane thought to himself for a moment, studying Sam's hand. On one side of the coin, he liked the idea of tipping Gus and Emily extra money and he enjoyed a good bottle of whiskey, but on the other, it felt like Sam was using his social skills just to get booze for him and his outcast friends. He really didn't want to waste money on a second, unnecessary bottle of whiskey, so he put his hand out and shook Sam's.

"Deal." He replied curtly. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have to get back to work." 

"No problem, I'll let you know when I get her number!" Sam smiled and laughed as he turned back around and went back to sweeping the aisle.

Shane took the box out back to the recycling and thought about what just happened. Did he really want to get this girl's number? 

_It'll just be for free booze,_ a small voice in his head said. _Just do it for the free booze! You won't need to really talk to her even if you do get her number._

Shane shook his head slightly and dismissed the small voice. He threw himself back into his work.

Hours later, his shift was over at 5PM before the night shift came in from out of town. He finished breaking down the last box and went into the break room to change. The first thing Shane did when he opened his locker was looked around, made sure no one was around, and took a large drink from the flask. With this last sip, it was empty. He sucked his teeth sharply at the sting of the whiskey going down his throat. He quickly changed out of his jumpsuit and put his blue jacket back on. 

He walked out of the break room and into the main store, making a beeline for the alcohol section. He picked out a fifth of his favorite whiskey and a 12 pack of beer to bring home after he visits the saloon. 

While checking out, he saw a flash of blonde hair run past him and go straight to Morris. _This must be the new girl Sam was talking about,_ he thought to himself. He looked towards Morris' desk and took in what he saw.

Instead of some middle-aged mother he imagined, in front of Morris' desk was a short, curvy young woman. Shane's guess was she was no older than early twenties, much younger than himself. She had on dark boot-cut jeans and a pair of muddy brown boots, a far too large green and black flannel for her figure, and her short blonde hair was up in a ponytail. There was a tan boonie hat nestled on the base of her slender neck, and the cord holding it in place was around the front of her neck. Her creamy white skin looked bright almost in comparison to the clothing she wore. Shane noted that her curves could not be hidden by the baggy flannel, as evidence by the adjustment he had to make in his pants. 

Thoughts of bending her over that counter flooded his mind, but he quickly shut them down. Who was he to fantasize over this new girl? She wasn't the normal type of woman Shane went for, but still, his mind began racing with ideas.

 _Damn, has it seriously been that long since Emily and I fucked?_ Shane thought, bringing his attention back to the cashier. He pulled out the gold coins to pay for the booze and waited while the cashier rung him up. 

He found himself mesmerized by her, to his surprise. He couldn't see her face well, but he could tell she was tense. Her and Morris kept talking in hushed tones and he handed her something over the counter before he watched her walk towards the aisles in search of something.

Shane grabbed the bag of alcohol and went over to Morris.

"Is she new?" Shane asked, putting his bag down and putting his hands in his pockets.

"She--" A flustered Morris managed to say, while straightening his desk to look more presentable, "--is the daughter of our Vice President for the southern region! Vice president, Seth. I'm expecting him to walk in the door at any moment, so I really can't talk."

 _It's Shane, but okay._ Shane shrugged his shoulders and picked up his bag of goodies and looked down the aisle that the blonde went down. 

He found himself walking towards her, as if his legs were moving on their own. He noted she was looking around the aisle for something, and before he knew it, he was in front of her.

He felt himself staring at her ass and his face immediately turned red. He covered half his face with his hand and cleared his throat. The blonde woman turned around at the sound and he finally got a good view of her profile.

She had a smaller, rounder face, with thin lips and a button nose. Her green, almond-shaped eyes looked up at him and she smiled an infectious smile with straight white teeth. There was a key on a string around her neck as well. Her light, blonde baby hairs were barely visible against her complexion, and she looked like an angel under the fluorescent lights of the store.

"Oh, thank Yoba, someone to help!" Her melodic voice carried over the JojaCorp music. "Could you help me find the alcohol?" 

Shane could hear his thoughts racing in his head. _When was the last time a girl looked up at you with all her clothes on, let alone sober?_ The small voice in his head was back, just as bitter as before. 

Were his pants always this tight? 

He simply nodded and motioned for her to follow him down the aisle as he adjusted himself when she wasn't looking.

He brought her to the alcohol section and she sighed in relief.

"I would never have figured it out," she said, turning to Shane. "Thank you so much!"

"It's fine." He mumbled softly, looking down. He felt self conscious as he looked at what he was wearing in comparison to her. 

She extended her hand. "I'm Carrie." she introduced herself.

"Shane." He shook her hand. It was small and soft inside his, and he couldn't help but think about what her hands could do.

He quickly shut down those thoughts and released her hand. "I have to go, see you around."

"Oh, okay!" Shane swore he saw disappointment flash across her eyes. "Nice to meet you, Shane!"

He hurried out of the building, not even bothering to say goodbye to his coworkers. He could feel his face flushed and his heart beating a million miles a minute. What was going on?

He quickly caught his breath at the bridge and looked over at the Saloon. Gus and Emily were probably wondering where he was, so he decided tonight he was going to continue drinking. He needed to get his mind off of what was going on with his brain.

He opened the heavy wooden door of the Saloon and immediately occupied his spot between the bar and the fireplace. He placed the JojaMart bag down on the ground and looked over at Emily behind the bar.

The thin, lanky girl with bright blue hair flashed a tight-lipped smile at him and she put a beer mug down on the bartop. Her round brown eyes looked fierce tonight, and Shane couldn't help but think about how long it's been since they had sex. Was it a week? Two weeks? He couldn't quite figure it out.

"Hey, Emily..." He started, taking a heavy gulp of the tapped beer. "What're you doing tonight after work?" 

"I have to go straight home tonight. Haley and I are going to Zuzu City tomorrow so she can look at their art school." Her cold tone towards him made it known that something was wrong.

"Is everything okay?" He asked, taking another gulp. 

"Well, if I'm being honest, no, not really." She sighed, picking up a mug out of the dishwasher and started drying it with her rag. "It's been so long since we've seen each other outside of here, I was hoping we'd hang out sooner." 

Shane just looked at her with a blank look. "I see you here every day. We talk all the time."

Emily finished polishing the glass and moved onto the next one. "Not like that and you know it..."

She looked over to see Gus chatting up Pam, another resident drunk in what Shane considered a sad excuse of a tiny town. "I miss having wild sex every night. What happened to that, Shane?"

Shane pinched the bridge of his nose with his index finger and thumb. "That's what I was asking about. I want to see you tonight." He didn't want to admit to her that the new girl that moved into the farm down the road gave him a hard-on earlier. 

He wanted to forget about her because he knew she would never go for someone who looked like him. Hell, she would never go after someone who acted like him either. He was a worthless human who woke up drunk and then just showed up to work every day and then drank some more. 

Emily was much different. She was outspoken and quirky, almost to the point of being awkward. She didn't have many friends, like Shane. She did mundane work, like Shane. The light she had in her eyes, however, were just as dim as Shane's.

"Alright, if that's what you want. Meet me behind my house when I get out of work. If you're still sober enough to get there, that is." She replied curtly, putting the glass down and going over to Gus.

Shane sighed in relief and downed his first pint of beer that night. The cool, hoppy liquid slid down his throat and after a long day of sipping on the whiskey in his flask, it felt like heaven. 

Gus brought him another one as Pam preoccupied Emily with what they called "girl talk". 

"Have you met the new farmer?" Gus asks after a pregnant pause. Shane took a large gulp of his beer and nodded slowly afterwards.

"Yeah, her name is Carrie. She came into my work today and scared the crap out of Morris." Shane replied. "Apparently she's the daughter of the VP of our sector."

"Oh, good." Gus' brow furrowed in response. "So she's just more corporate scum."

"I guess so," Shane took one more large sip of his beer and set the empty glass down. "Still though, she didn't seem pleased to be there."

"I wonder if she'll ever come in here. I'd like to give her a piece of my mind." Gus replaced the empty beer with a new one. "Want me to start you some pepper poppers? I know you don't eat when you work."

"That'd be great, thanks Gus." Shane lifted his third glass and took a slightly smaller sip this time. His head was already spinning, so he figured going slow would help him not be hungover tomorrow.

Gus nodded in response and went over to Emily, said a few things, and then went in the back. Emily looked over at him and smiled a much wider smile than she did when he showed up.

 _You're getting laid tonight,_ the small voice in his head sang. _You better not get whiskey dick again!_

 _That's right!_ Shane thought, taking a small sip from the beer again. _I couldn't get hard the last time Emily and I tried to have sex. I hope it doesn't happen again._

Gus came out from the back with a plate of steaming pepper poppers and placed it in front of Shane. The tired retail worker nodded in thanks and dug in. Gus's pepper poppers were always delicious, even if they weren't very good for the body. 

Shane managed to scarf down all of them without feeling the need to use a bathroom and throw up, and gave Gus a thumbs up. The bartender came over with a glass of water and took the empty plate away. 

Shane gulped down the water and placed the empty glass on the bar top. Suddenly, something was vibrating against his leg. 

_My phone!!_ He thought, pulling it out of his shorts pocket and seeing the caller ID. Marnie was calling. He pressed the green button and brought the phone to his ear.

"Hi Marnie." Shane said, taking a small sip of his beer. "What's going on?"

"Hi, Shane. I was wondering if you could watch Jas tomorrow night?" Marnie's soft voice was crackled a little bit because of the service. "I have some things in town I need to take care of."

"You mean your secret love affair with a certain someone?" Shane replied, taking another small sip. 

"Shane!" Marnie hissed, her voice getting lower. "I told you, it's not like that! Please, just watch Jaz for me?"

Shane sighed. "Sure, fine. I'll be home late tonight, but I get out of work tomorrow at 5PM, is that alright?"

"Perfect!" Marnie sang. "I'll see you when you get home. Love you!"

Shane hung up his phone and went to go take a sip of his beer, only to find it was empty. He placed the empty mug back on the bar top. He took a look around, and realized he was the only person there now. He pulled out his phone and checked the time, and didn't even realize that it was 11PM already.

He waited for Gus to come over with the bill, and pulled out the gold coins to pay for it and then some tip. _A bit of a cheaper night_ , he thought, as he placed his wallet back in his pocket. 

Shane picked up his bag of booze and waited for Emily to finish her cleaning before heading out with her for the night. 

The two of them left the saloon together, walking towards Emily's house. They were silent the entire time, just like they always were. They never engaged in small talk, pillow talk, or any form of affection before they were intimate.

They went behind Emily's house, and Emily opened her window on the first floor and put her stuff on her bedroom floor. Shane put down his Joja bag and put his hand down his pants to stimulate himself. 

He looked at Emily's ass and fondled his limp cock, willing for it to become hard. He didn't want to disappoint her again, but it was looking that way.

Flashes of Carrie's face and her curvy body and large ass came into his mind, and immediately he started becoming hard. He could feel himself blushing as he stroked himself to the thought of Carrie's juicy pu--

"Okay, coast is clear." Emily interrupted his fantasy as she came down from her window and walked up to him, palming his cock over his pants and his hand. "Hard for me already?" her sultry voice said to him, pulling her skirt up and her panties down.

She leaned over the back of her house and presented her ass to him, her pussy wet and Shane was ready to go.

He undid his shorts and pulled his dick out of his boxers and slowly slid into her. She was warm and wet, but Shane's thoughts were elsewhere.

As they fucked, he couldn't help but think of Carrie. How her ass would feel in his hands, how her moans would sound, everything. He imagined what she looked like under the oversized flannel, the jeans, and with her short hair down. What would she sound like? What she would look like when he made her cum, what she would sound like, how she would say (or even scream) his name? He thought about how soft her skin was just from the brief interaction he had of shaking her hand. How would the dainty hand feel wrapped around his cock? 

He felt himself jump inside Emily and he heard she made a noise, but he continued fantasizing.

He thought about how Carrie's tits would feel in his hands. He was always more of an ass and legs guy, but he knew she had a rather large rack. He imagined himself playing with them, sucking on them, pinching her nipples until she gasped and made small, high pitched breathy noises in his ear.

He kept thrusting to his perverse thoughts and when he was about to cum, he pulled out and spilled on the ground. 

"That...was...amazing!" Emily sighed, her legs shaking as she tried to hold herself up. "Oh, Yoba, I don't think I've ever been that loud." 

"You were loud??" Shane said without realizing, then cleared his throat. "I mean, yeah, that was great. I'm glad you enjoyed it." 

"Same time tomorrow?" Emily asked, kissing him on the cheek as he put his dick away and zipped up his shorts.

"I can't tomorrow, I have to watch Jas. I won't be in tomorrow night, I'm sorry." Shane said, cupping her face with his hand and kissing her nose. "But don't worry, we'll do this again soon."

Emily kissed him on the nose back and then climbed into her room. She blew him a kiss goodbye as he waved and walked down the path back to his house. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and checked the time, 12:30AM. He was ready for bed.

He felt ashamed as he walked home. He thought about how he used Emily to get off, for the first time in what felt like weeks, but he thought of the new farmer the entire time. He didn't understand what was going on. He's never lusted after someone like Carrie before. Emily was more his type, with her smaller, petite frame and smaller...well, everything. 

He found himself back at his house, but not as drunk as when he left it this morning. He let himself through the front door to find all the lights off as he walked into the kitchen and made himself a microwave meal. Gus was right, he should start eating during his day shifts. 

He shrugged off his sweatshirt and put it in his room, but not before grabbing his flask from the pocket.

Shane went back out to the kitchen and filled his flask over the sink, taking a swig from the whiskey bottle before he sealed it back up for the night. He walked into his room with the microwave dinner, flask, and JojaMart bag and turned off the light in the kitchen. 

He couldn't sleep that night. He couldn't keep his mind off of Carrie. And why was he so attracted to her?


End file.
